


The Nurse Bucky Routine

by Finely Honed (jaqen_hgar)



Series: Imagine Tony & Bucky [42]
Category: Captain America (Movies), Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Bucky Barnes Is a Good Bro, Bucky Barnes's Metal Arm, Fluff, Friendship, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, M/M, Stitches, Tony Hates Needles
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-06-16
Updated: 2015-06-16
Packaged: 2018-04-04 16:54:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,473
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4145430
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jaqen_hgar/pseuds/Finely%20Honed
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <span class="small">Prompt: imagine Tony getting hurt during a battle and needing stitches. Bucky takes it upon himself to stitch Tony up. the thing is, and Bucky knows this, Tony hates needles. always had. Tony had said it was something that happened when he was a kid and ever since Tony's hated needles. and Bucky needs to use needles to not only stitch up the wound but to apply an anesthetic. after everything is done Bucky takes care of Tony and though he doesn't admit it Tony loves it when Bucky takes care of him.</span>
</p>
<p>“Ow, ow, ow!”</p>
<p>Bucky did his best not to roll his eyes. “I haven’t done anything yet.”</p>
<p>“Pre-emptive, but entirely valid,” Tony insisted, shifting uncomfortably in his chair. “I’m telling you—glue—we just glue it, and then…”</p>
<p>“You need stitches, so I’m giving you stitches,” Bucky answered in his most soothing voice. “It’ll be over before you know it.”</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Nurse Bucky Routine

“Ow, ow, ow!”

Bucky did his best not to roll his eyes. “I haven’t done anything yet.”

“Pre-emptive, but entirely valid,” Tony insisted, shifting uncomfortably in his chair. “I’m telling you—glue—we just glue it, and then…”

“You need stitches, so I’m giving you stitches,” Bucky answered in his most soothing voice. “It’ll be over before you know it.”

Tony chewed at his thumbnail, one leg bouncing chaotically until Bucky placed his hand on the engineer’s knee to still the movement. Tony sighed, tensing up for a moment before relaxing, a sign that he’d given in.

“Can I have a drink at least?”

“You don’t actually want a drink,” Bucky replied, returning to setting up his little Patch Tony Up workstation. Tony had been doing really well with his sobriety, but that didn’t mean he’d stopped  _thinking_  about drinking.

“No,” Tony admitted. “Guess not. Glue really is a viable option, I’m not just being a brat.”

“You’re not a brat.” Bucky looked up, smiling despite himself over the puppy dog eyes Tony was giving him. “JARVIS, can you—I dunno—pull up some sort of distracting visualization? Something to help keep him occupied while I work.”

JARVIS did as asked, Tony narrowing his eyes slightly, while Bucky blinked in surprise; the A.I. had chosen an exploded display of Bucky’s bionic arm, specifically a real-time close up on his fingers and wrist. If he wasn’t entirely mistaken, a tiny creeping blush was making its way up from under Tony’s collar.

“Thanks,” Bucky said before Tony could tell JARVIS to take it away. “So, keep your eyes on that, and we’ll be done before you know it.”

Tony nodded his agreement, and shifted around until he was a bit more comfortable. “Fine. Do it.”

The wound wasn’t life threatening by any means, but it was deep and definitely required stitches. If it had been anyone else on the team, they’d have gone to the hospital, or to Bruce, gotten patched up, and then been on their way.

Tony wasn’t like the rest of their crazy cohorts; he was a challenge unto himself. He hated letting physicalities get in the way of his work, or life, which was kind of insane, considering the way he spent his days and nights. The guy had a reactor in the middle of his chest, and that didn’t even seem to slow him down, but needles? They were something else entirely.

Bucky didn’t know the details, just knew it had something to do with Tony’s childhood. The guy _hated_  needles. Hated them enough to have burned himself in order to cauterize a wound so he’d be able to avoid getting stitches. Bucky had only discovered this after accidentally walking in just as Tony was finishing up, and yeah. Not the best conversation they’d ever had.

Since he was a mama bear at heart, Bucky had agreed to keep quiet about the whole incident if in exchange Tony promised to tell him the next time he was dealing with that sort of injury, and to let Bucky be his personal nursemaid.

Honestly, he’d sort of expected Tony to break the promise, but to his absolute surprise, he’d been taken aside after their latest post-mission debriefing.

“I have an, ah, situation. Involving. You know.”

“Is this a weird sex thing?” Bucky had asked, just to get a laugh.

“Stitches, jackass,” Tony had managed after a moment, and now here they were.

“You’re going to feel a little pinch. That’s just the local, so the rest won’t hurt. And you’re going to keep your eyes on my hand—the virtual one—so you won’t even have to see any of this. Got it?”

Tony nodded.

“Alrighty,” Bucky began stroking the inside of Tony’s wrist with his bionic hand.

Tony jerked, but then relaxed, a tiny smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. “What’re you doing?”

“Petting you,” Bucky said, shifting a little closer. “I can stop if you don’t like it.”

When Tony didn’t say anything, Bucky grinned, and began tracing little figure eights against the inside of Tony’s wrist. He kept his breathing even, steady, and maybe a little louder than normal. Stevie had always listened along, tried to match his pace when his asthma was flaring up, so he figured it couldn’t hurt.

While Tony was distracted and relaxed, Bucky carefully applied the local, needle in and out in a flash. “Right, now we’ll just give that a moment to do its thing. You okay?”

“I hardly even felt that,” Tony answered, sounding a little amazed.

He tried to turn his head, so Bucky just used his metal fingers to make him face forward again, while with his right hand he set aside the anesthetic. Tony made a noise that sounded like, “hnng,” that he then turned into a halfhearted cough. Smiling to himself, Bucky stroked Tony’s cheek before returning to his wrist.

They waited together in silence, until Bucky felt enough time had passed. While drawing stars against Tony’s palm, he prodded the area he’d need to stitch, and received no response.

“Okay, we’re good to start. This shouldn’t take long.”

“Have you always been ambidextrous?”

“Huh, you know, I’m not sure. Back when I was growing up people were a little weird about being left handed. You just didn’t do it, or the nuns whacked ya with a ruler.”

Tony snickered. “Oh yeah,  _that_.”

“So, dunno. It’s comfortable fighting with both hands, and, uh… you know. All sorts of things.”

Tentatively, Tony’s fingertips curled inwards so that they brushed against Bucky’s, and so he linked their fingers. Holding hands with Tony Stark. Not exactly how he thought he’d end his day, but he wasn’t about to complain.

“What sort of things?” Tony asked, not even trying to sound innocent.

Bucky grinned, and squeezed Tony’s hand. “You got a big ol’ brain. Use your imagination.”

In with the needle, tug the suture tight, but not too tight, and repeat. He was already halfway done, and Tony hadn’t even so much as fidgeted.

“Thanks, by the way. For this.”

“No problem. You helped me out when I needed it.” He felt the slightest twitch of Tony’s hand in his, added, “Besides, I like spending time with you.”

He diverted his attention long enough to see Tony smile, then refocused on the stitches.

“I’d say ‘me too’ but it seems weird, considering the circumstances.”

Bucky grinned, stroked his thumb against Tony’s skin. “Oh, you’re stuck with me the rest of the night, pal. Gotta make sure you don’t do anything stupid, like using this arm and messin’ up all my hard work.”

“Is that a fact?”

Bucky tied off the final knot, let go of Tony’s hand so he’d have both of his free to make sure everything was right before cutting the thread, then said, “Damn right it’s a fact. Also, you’re done.”

Tony’s eyes widened, but by the time he turned to look at his arm, Bucky had already covered up the tray with the needles, so there was nothing to see. He smiled shyly, moving his arm to test the stitches, which prompted Bucky to take him by the wrist and make him stop.

“See, this is why I’m stickin’ around.”

“Thanks,” Tony grinned. “So, since I’m under orders to take it easy, how about we order some food.”

Bucky opened his mouth, but caught himself before asking if they should see if anyone else wanted anything. There was something telling in the way Tony was looking down at the shiny metal fingers still wrapped around his wrist. It made Bucky feel a little brave.

“Sure. Your place, or mine?”

He knew he’d made the right choice as soon as he saw the way Tony smiled at him.

Hours later, stuffed full of Thai food and some cookies Bucky had forgotten he had in his cabinet, he had a sleepy Tony Stark curled against his side, and still had a smile on his face.

“We should do this again,” Bucky suggested hesitantly, massaging Tony’s scalp and making the man purr. “Without the whole Nurse Bucky routine, naturally.”

“Dunno,” Tony mumbled, snuggling closer. “I think you’d look pretty good in a sexy nurse getup.”

“Any getup I wear is sexy, because  _I’m_  wearing it.”

Tony giggled, even as he agreed. “Yeah. Definitely.”

Bucky smiled, but began to feel a bit self conscious over more or less asking Tony on a date and getting no real reply. Of course, that was when Tony finally piped up, sounding a little hesitant himself. “How about my place next time?”

“It’s a date.”

“Alright then.”

Tony somehow found a way to burrow even closer, and then a couple minutes later just up and fell asleep. Bucky watched him for a bit, then did the same, a smile still on his face.

**Author's Note:**

> You can find me on tumblr here: [dezinformatsia.tumblr.com/](http://dezinformatsia.tumblr.com/) and all of my Imagine Tony & Bucky fills can be found here: [imaginetonyandbucky.tumblr.com/tagged/dezinformatsia](http://imaginetonyandbucky.tumblr.com/tagged/dezinformatsia)


End file.
